Curated Spotlight: AMG

In last week's CuratedTV episode, Curated's AMG expert, Stephen, visited world-renowned Mercedes-Benz tuner RENNtech to take a look at the extensive restoration process that Curated performs to resurrect modern classics in preparation for their future caretakers.

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AMG is a name that has been synonymous with high-performance luxury cars for decades. The history of AMG is a testament to the power of passion, dedication, and innovation. The AMG division of Mercedes-Benz was founded in 1965 by two rogue Mercedes-Benz engineers, Hans Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher, who had a dream to go racing. The name AMG comes from the first letters of their surnames and the town of Grossaspach, where Aufrecht was born.

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In the early years, AMG's focus was on racing, and their first big break came in 1971 at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps with their famous 300SEL 6.8 that won its class and took second place overall. This victory put AMG on the map and proved that their engineering and motorsports technology was world-class.

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In the 1980s and 1990s, AMG shifted its focus to building high-performance versions of Mercedes-Benz production cars. Combining all elements of motorsports development and pushing the boundaries of engineering, the super sedan was born. The Hammer was the first sedan to break the 300 kph barrier. While creating a new category of car off the track AMG found success on the track with the 190E DTM car winning a total of 50 DTM victories between 1988 and 1993. This was followed by the C36 AMG, the first AMG car to be sold through Mercedes-Benz dealerships.

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Highly sought-after by collectors and enthusiasts alike, these cars are true icons within the automotive world and represent the pinnacle of engineering and design for their time. The raw power, sound, and driving dynamics of AMG vintage cars are simply unparalleled; the driving experience is unmatched by modern cars and given the limited production of AMGs, it’s a coveted experience at that. The rarity and desirability of these cars has led to steady climbs in popularity and value.

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In late 2022, we had the honor of playing a leading role in the AMG Hammer reunion at The Bridge in The Hamptons, where seven of the 16 known original W124 that were blessed with iconic 5.6/6.0 32 valve engines in the USA were displayed by their passionate owners. And, among the grouping was the one-off silver AMG Hammer Prototype delivered new to the founder of AMG. This example, previously sourced and sold by CURATED, has been featured in numerous magazines, including the famous Road & Track “World’s Fastest Cars,” and we recently learned that it was extensively used by Mr. Aufrecht (A in AMG) during development. What’s more, it was the original and first AMG to break 300kmh!

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Presently we have an edit of AMG examples available, including a 1985 Mercedes-Benz 500 SEC AMG 6.0, 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560 SEC AMG Widebody, and 1995 Mercedes-BenzSL600AMG6.0.